I figure while I'm already on here, what the heck lol. I also mainly want to feature one song in particular which is why I end up posting these in the first place.
I looooooove this. Love it so much I actually listened to the entire album. I never do that. Usually albums just go onto my "I'll get to this eventually" list and it takes me a year or so to get to it. The album is equally as good as the song.
CLC - Meow Meow & Liar (2017) (K-Pop)
Their comeback was a cheap rip off of 4Minute. There. I said it. Hobgoblin is a fun song yes, but Hyuna ruined CLC by trying to make them EXACTLY into 4Minute. And does she love the sound of her voice so much to make the one rapper girl sound exactly like her? Gosh that was the most offputting thing I've ever experienced in K-pop. Hyuna needs to stay away from CLC unless she has some fresh ideas for them. These two album tracks on the other hand are great. They're tropical house/K-pop sounding would have worked much better for a retooled CLC. Make them more of a cool "bad girl" group, but with something fresher and less sounding of desperation.
Seohyun - Don't Say No (2017) (K-Pop)
I love this new K-pop trend. Bright colors and house fusions. It's so hilarious to me how obvious the trends show up in K-pop. No. K-pop is nothing like Western music at all *rolls eyes*.
Predianna - Cry Like This (2017) (J-Pop)
Tsubaki Factory - Hatsukoi Sunrise (2017) (J-Pop)
My babies! Mark my words. They are H!P's next big thing.
I said I was going to do this again and I'm going to try my best to post on time for each day lol. The format will be exactly the same as last year except this year I'm going to the places each thing moved (or is new) from the past year. Mainly because I just want to see how my interests have changed over the year. So here we go, entry #1!
So I feel like last year's list was completely all over the place. 2015 was the first year since 2012 that I had had much interest in new K-pop and due to that, my list was so scatterbrained and I had forgotten about so much. This year I think I have a much more accurate idea of my top 10 K-pop songs of all time.
#10
Oh My Girl - Closer (2015) (-)
This song made the list last year even though it was practically brand new. Closer really reignited an interest in K-pop for me. It's just an incredible song by an incredible group. If the song continues to hold up in the future, it easily could be in my top three.
#9
Girl's Day - Expectation (2012) (NEW)
I really got back into this song this year. I loved it when it came out, but I finally picked up the album this year and have played it a lot since. This song in my opinion was Girl's Day's peak. They've had good songs since, but this was their peak musically for me.
#8
Girls' Generation - Into The New World (2007) (-4)
Out of all of SNSD's songs over the years, their debut remains my favorite. It's actually aged rather well as opposed to once great songs like The Boys or Run Devil Run that just sound like they should've stayed in 2011. It's just a fun & uplifting song.
#7
Chocolat - I Like It (2011) (-4)
I still miss them so much. Years ago this would've been number one for me, but quite frankly it just hasn't aged well at all. I still love the song and I still love them, but there's so many other songs that are sounding better than this.
#6
Wonder Girls - Loved (2015) (NEW)
So last year I had I Feel You pretty high up, which was only because I couldn't think of half the tracks that I should've featured. But as much as I love that song, after listening to the album over the past year, Loved is such a stand out track. In my opinion, it's probably the single greatest K-pop album tracks ever released. It's just 80s filled amazingness.
#5
After School - Dressing Room (2013) (+1)
I'm still upset at myself that I haven't purchased the First Love EP yet. I want to, but I keep feeling like I can't justify buying K-pop EPs anymore because they cost the same as full albums & none have come up for cheap on ebay that I've seen. Oh well, eventually. This is After School's greatest song and should've been a single. I couldn't decide if this & Loved should've been switched around so I just kept them in the order of release.
#4
2NE1 - Come Back Home (2014) (NEW)
Quite frankly the reason this is so dang high is because of their disbandment. However, this is an incredible song and unlike the vast majority of their other material, I feel like this will hold up over the years.
#3
Orange Caramel - Bangkok City (2011) (-2)
The beat in this song is still fresh 5 years later. The ultimate K-pop club track in my opinion. Orange Caramel needs to release something else like this.
#2
Swan.B - Be All Right (2011) (-)
Why does no one know this song?! WHY?! Yes, it's super duper indie & there's no clue what ever happened to the group that did it but it's just so good. Eurobeat is sadly not featured in K-pop ever.
#1
KARA - Step (2011) (NEW)
I don't think there will be anyone in K-pop who will ever release anything quite as amazing as Step. It's one of those songs you can never get tired of and sound like they could be released tomorrow and still smash. I didn't list it last year because I forgotI forgot about it when I when I made the list. Kinda upset that I did that lol
It actually freaks me out how long ago this was released. It's been five years already since this album. I remember being so excited that SNSD was releasing an English version of the song and releasing the album in the States. Thinking about it now, I actually cringe a bit at the over excitement over K-pop stuff. I'm thinking that every teen fan of K-pop goes through that phase. Personally, I'm just glad that I was older in high school before K-pop began to become a thing so I avoided most of the middle school-esque insane fangirling. Beyond that, this was the first SNSD album I owned. It was also the first SNSD comeback I had seen in K-pop. I had listened to some of SNSD's songs before, like Run Devil Run and Hoot, but I hadn't been a fan during an actual comeback period before. It was crazy seeing all the hype of the release. As for the album itself, I remember thinking it was awesome and how much I wanted it. Nowadays, I don't think it's aged super well. Most K-pop albums never do.
Track #1, The Boys
The big title track. I remember it being absolutely huge. I was obsessed with the song. It seemed like the biggest thing ever to come out of K-pop at the time. Now, I think this is their worst aged title track. I don't know if it's because I listened to it so much back then, or if it just truly has fallen apart with age, but I'd rather not listen to it again. The only lead singles I think are worse are their newest stuff. It just kinda has that sound where you can tell it was released a certain year in K-pop, much like 2NE1's older material feels. I guess that happens with genre defining groups and singles, they become representative of the time they were released and sound odd outside of that scope. 3.5/5.
Track #2, Telepathy
I think this is one of songs on the album that has held up the best. The music is lighthearted and not that kind of heavy, noisy K-pop sound from 2009-2011. It fact, I could see a group like DIA or Oh My Girl releasing this now. 4/5.
Track #3, Say Yes
This song pretty much typifies the K-pop album of this era. In my opinion, most K-pop albums from my earlier years knowing K-pop outside of 2-3 songs are pretty bad or boring. Like all of the effort was put on the title track and they just randomly chose some songs from a vault to stick on the rest of the CD. It's probably just me though. I've never been a fan of the overly flowery cutesy track sound like here. 3/5.
Track #4, Trick
This song really sounds like a remix of Hoot in the chorus. It has that sound that I was talking about with The Boys, but not as noisy. The verses are the main culprit of the noisiness but the chorus is still really nice today. 4/5.
Track #5, How Great Is Your Love
Yawn. Oh, sorry. I mean, this song is one of those slow, boring, K-pop ballads that are a dime a dozen. Listen to pretty much every K-pop album ever released and you'll find one. I guess it's well sung. I can say that. 2.5/5.
Track #6, My J
I'm resisting the urge to talk about Tomomi Itano's Dear J in this lol. This song is like How Great Is Your Love except in a different way. Just like the boring ballad, there's also almost always one of those "quirky" tracks that are weirdly sung that don't sound like they were supposed to be done that way but the were. That's this song. 2.5/5.
Track #7, Oscar
My absolutely favorite song on the album when I was in high school. I just thought it was so catchy and awesome. It hasn't held up as well as I wish it did, but I get really nostalgic listening to it. To me, it feels like a sister song of Super Junior's Opera. They have that same sound to them. 4/5.
Track #8, Top Secret
To be honest, I'm uncertain if I liked this one a lot after Oscar or if that was Telepathy. It's been a while since I've listened to this album. It's another Hoot sounding song, with the whole James Bond thing going on. Whether or not I liked this a lot years ago, it's certainly held up better than Oscar. 4/5.
Track #9, Lazy Girl (Dolce Far Niente)
I hated this song then, still hate it now. It's another My J situation with the way it's sung but worse. The way the very beginning of the song annoys me so much. It sounds like the voice you make when you're mocking someone. The rest of the song is so sugary sweet it's terrible. 2.5/5.
Track #10, Sunflower
Here's where the album has really started to fall off. Before the song started, I couldn't even remember anything about it either good or bad. When it started, I still couldn't remember it. It's just a extremely generic K-Pop ballad. Bland and boring. 3/5.
Track #11, Vitamin
This is another track that was also just sort of there when I was younger. Now, it's kind of catchy to me. It's not like "how did I miss this?!" but more like "hey this is better than I remember" is a cutesy song but not an annoying one. Kind of catchy. 3.5/5.
Track #12, Mr. Taxi (Korean Ver.)
So that's my thoughts on one of the albums that defined my last year of high school. If it seems I was hard on it, it's because I was. I tend to review things I find very nostalgic with a sharper edge than things that don't have that nostalgia factor for me. I believe I do it that way because I want to remember it the way it was five years ago, but it's not and never will be the same again. Wishful thinking I guess is a big part of it. 3.5/5.
Hey everyone! I'm in the middle of papers & tests galore but came up with a fun idea that I'd like to do. So for every day up until Christmas (I will try my best to be on time lol), I will post a new "Top" list. They're going to be a variety of different topics in music so I hope people find them interesting and maybe find a new song to love! I won't do any kind of "review" or commentary on any of them (because I'll never get through them xD). Today's topic is my top 10 K-pop song of all time. Enjoy!
#10: Oh My Girl - Closer (2015)
#9: f(x) - Beautiful Stranger (2012)
#8: Wonder Girls - I Feel You (2015)
#7: Nine Muses - News (2012)
#6: After School - Dressing Room (2013)
#5: Shinee - Sherlock (2013)
#4: Girls' Generation - Into The New World (2007)
#3: Chocolat - I Like It (2011)
#2: Swan.B - Be All Right (2011)
#1: Orange Caramel - Bangkok City (2011)
So that's my list! What's your favorite K-pop songs of all time?
Oh My Girl is an 8 member Korean girl group that just debuted this year. This is only their second title track. I honestly have no words to describe this song. It's so catchy and beautiful and awesome and original for K-pop. I would have never expected something like this to come from a K-pop girl group. It sounds like something off of Ellie Goulding's Halcyon except better. It's probably too early to name this one of K-pop's best ever isn't it? Their second mini album, Closer, released on October 8th.
Track #2: Veridia - Crazy In A Good Way
There's nothing better then when I find a good Christian rock song. With so many of the groups I used to love on hiatus or disbanding or only touring, it's rare for me to come across something great. Veridia is a Christian rock group that is fronted by a female vocalist. Their style is mainly rock but also mixes in some electronic elements as well. I also really appreciate that instead of just side stepping everything Christian while calling themselves a Christian group (like too many groups that call themselves "Christian" groups), their lyrics seem more like Skillet's, where they have Christian lyrics and songs in a way that is accessible for non-Christian listeners. I'm very much looking forward to their future as I'm always looking out for Christian groups that don't compromise themselves just to fit in. Veridia's second EP, Pretty Lies, released September 25th.
Track #3: Taeyeon - I (ft. Verbal Jint)
It's too bad this song has a token rapper on it because it'd be really good if it didn't. Ignoring the unneeded rapper, this song is really not the direction I was expecting Taeyeon to take. I was expecting a full on ballad but this is something unique. It actually reminds me of a mellower version of something Swedish pop group Timoteij would do, but since I'm certain that there won't be many people who know who they are, I guess I would call it a mellow pop track with great vocals and just a hint of American country music influence. Just as a side note, it is very amusing to me that SM Entertainment is now releasing unique songs where a few years ago they were as generic as possible. Taeyeon's first mini album, I, released on October 7th.
Since her first album was released on Friday, I could use all three slots on this week's post for songs from her stellar album. I won't though lol. Mad Hatter is one of the more instant songs on the album. I hope people will enjoy it and check out the rest of her work!
Track #2: Girl's Generation - You Think
Up until this release, all of the songs that SNSD released post-Jessica were pretty terrible. Lion Heart is ok at best, but this song really is great. I came across the demo version by Saara & fell in love with the song. It's got such an attitude to it. It does sound a little dated for a K-pop song, but that doesn't stop the song from being a fun, attitude filled pop track. SNSD's new album, Lion Heart, releases on the 19th.
Track #3: Morning Musume- Oh My Wish
I can't remember if I posted this video before this section turned into New Music Thursdays or not, but it doesn't matter. The song is fantastic! Oh My Wish is a song in MM's EDM style. Super catchy....and Kanon & Haruka are the centers! Their new single comes out August 19th.
I kind of wish that Girls' Generation would do more subgroups. It would be interesting. As for this subgroup, I always had found it curious that they chose Seohyun over Jessica. When I was really into K-pop, they were the three that seemed to be at the forefront of the group. Although, now I guess the exclusion of Jessica makes a little more sense. I also always figured this was going to be a one-off subgroup, until they came back last year to my surprise.
Track #1, Twinkle: Surprisingly, the best song on the album is actually the lead track. Usually for me there is a song on the album that is miles better than what was chosen as the single, but this album certainly features the best choice for the lead track. It's catchy and it really showcases the girls' vocals. One criticism I do have is that this song and the album don't really deviate from the main group's style. While that's not necessarily a bad thing, I personally prefer subgroups to have something about them that really showcases something different than what the main group has to offer. For example, Orange Caramel and After School. After School tends to showcase more mature, sexy tracks while Orange Caramel does funky and crazy. 5/5.
Track #2, Baby Steps: As much as I think their vocals are very nice in this song, it's just a standard K-pop ballad. It's nothing interesting to me. 3/5.
Track #3, OMG (Oh My God): This song is very close to the sound of Twinkle. It's got that jazzy pop sound to it. What I do like about it is that their vocals change key in the second chorus and it really makes the song for me. It doesn't stay in the predictable Twinkle sound, but deviates enough to make it really stand out as its own song. 5/5.
Track #4, Library: Ugh. Songs about libraries (not really but yeah xD).....if I ever have to deal with a library again it'll be too soon. I have five large papers due at the end of the semester (of which three are 10+ pages) and I've been spending so much time on the university library's website requesting articles and researching. Blah. Avoiding it with this xD Even though the song is reminding me off all of the work I'm putting off, it's a very nice song. It still sounds exactly like something the full group would release, but that doesn't stop it from being an enjoyable song. Taeyeon's voice really carries this subunit's songs. It's just very pleasant to listen to. 4/5.
Track #5, Good-Bye Hello: I swear I've heard this song before. I'm also pretty sure that I have the other song that reminds me of it, but I can't remember the name. The music of the song is from something but I just can't place it. I think it's an old song. In SNSD's discography, it reminds me a of a mix between Lazy Girl and Vitamin. It's a really feel good song. 4/5.
Track #6, Love Sick: Another very standard K-pop ballad. Nothing really stands out about it besides their vocals. 3/5.
Track #7, Checkmate: What I appreciate about this song is that it's an upbeat one without the jazzy pop sound. It's good to have some variety in a mini album like this. That being said, it's not as great as either Twinkle or OMG. It does serve as a great ending track though. Especially with the cheering parts in the song. 4/5.
Twinkle (Audio):
For the subgroup's first offering, it's very good. Again, I still would have liked to see a deviation from the SNSD style in at least one song on the album. To me, these songs sound like they would fit perfectly on any SNSD album. 4/5.
It really bothers me that their first Korean album and first Japanese album are named the exact same thing....even though they have COMPLETELY different songs on them. I'm also surprised at how much this sold in Japan. I know they were more popular there when this was released, but I can't believe that it sold as much as Generasia has. I didn't realize they had been that popular in Japan. I wonder if they're still popular in Japan or no....it will be interesting to see how their new single does especially since it's the first release since Jessica was fired. This review is on the repackaged version...because it's the one I have. I won't be giving any ratings for Japanese versions of Korean songs.
Track #1, The Boys (Japanese Version): I used to love this song....my friend and I even recorded a cover of it. Can't really stand to listen to it anymore though. Never play something to death if you still want to love it four years later. I'm also very used to the English version since that's the one we played to death while making the cover, so hearing it in Japanese is odd. Since I can't speak Japanese I probably shouldn't bring it up, but is it just me or is their pronunciation off? Usually when listening to Japanese songs I can pick out a few words but this really sounds like gibberish to me. It's just a small nitpick...I realize that for them that Japanese is not their first language so expecting them to sing in it perfectly is ridiculous. It's like when I try to sing in Japanese it sounds nothing like the language at all xD.
Track #2, The Great Escape (Brian Lee Remix): The most annoying thing about this repackage is that they don't include all of the original songs and instead have remixes for some. I'll provide both the remix and original versions in the playlist. Thankfully, I hadn't heard any of the album songs before receiving the CD so I didn't have to deal with knowing the originals and having the remixes instead. However, now to me the remixes are the main track and the originals sound off. For this song, I really enjoy the music of the remix, but the over-processed vocals don't fit with it. It would work better if the vocals were arranged differently. For the original version, I feel like the vocals work, but the music doesn't. The vocals certainly fit a more electronic track, but the original doesn't go far enough for them to fit. 3.5/5.
Track #3, Bad Girl (ft. Dev) (The Cataracs Remix): I always wonder how much money SM spent on getting this remixed by The Cataracs. It's not like they were complete unknowns at this time. Dev was semi-relevant then too so I wonder how the decision to make this came about instead of doing a new song...because I feel like if you're going to spend the money on well-known producers/features, why just slap them on a remix? Especially because they were testing the waters in America. They probably wouldn't have gone anywhere, but they could have had a shot (miniscule, but still) with a new song produced by a known producer. This remix also suffers from issues with the vocal track. It just sounds so quiet in the song compared to the music. The instrumental is awesome though. As a standalone song this would have been awesome...and probably a hit for an American artist. Dev is so out of place on a Girls' Generation track anyway. The original track doesn't do the vocals any favors. The chorus is stronger, but as a whole I don't feel like this song really works....in fact I keep wanting to sing the words "Hurricane Venus" over parts of the original's chorus. 3.5/5.
Track #4, Time Machine: Finally out of the remixes. This is the only brand new song on the repackage. It's all right for a ballad. The verses really make the song. I wish the feel of the verses would be in the chorus since they feel like they're building up to an explosive chorus but it doesn't. 3.5/5.
Track #5, Mr. Taxi: Another song I played to death. Also their first original Japanese song. I had first gotten this song from their third Korean album and ended up getting used to the Korean version after hearing the Japanese for so long and then having to get used to the Japanese all over again when I got this was a pain. (Horrible run-on sentence...don't want to fix it though xD). Personally, I think this would have been a better song to go with for their Korean comeback than The Boys. It's catchy, it feels much more like the K-pop scene at that time, and it's really a better song. 4.5/5.
Track #6, Genie (Japanese Version): I never paid much attention to this song at all. I know it's one of their biggest hits, but it never caught my attention. I actually think I like this song better in Japanese, which is strange. Maybe it's because I haven't really listened to the Korean version.
Track #7, Gee (Japanese Version): This one is the opposite of Genie. It just sounds so strange to hear it in Japanese. Still one of their best songs ever no matter what language though.
Track #8, I'm In Love With The Hero: I was so hoping this song would be cooler than it is when I first read the title. The beginning of the song is so incredibly promising too. However, the song suffers from the same issues as the remixes. The vocals are really over processed, and I'm not sure if it's just me or iTunes or what but the vocals sound very low compared to the rest of the song. I don't understand why they opted to over process the vocals like they did on this album because not only are the girls quite good at singing, they also were able to pull off songs like this (Run Devil Run) without the annoying effect in these songs. 3.5/5.
Track #9, Hoot (Japanese Version): Another song I played to death in Korean. I'm actually surprised how much the Japanese lyrics work with the song. It works very well and unless I'm paying attention to the song I generally can't tell if it's the Korean or Japanese version.
Track #10, Let It Rain: This is my favorite of the new songs on the album. I can't really explain why I love it so much because it's not the type of song that I usually latch on to on an album like this. I guess it's a mixture of the fact that the vocals aren't ridiculously over-processed and it reminds me a lot of Jordin Sparks' Let It Rain, one of my favorite songs. They don't sound alike, they just have the same type of feel to them. 5/5.
Track #11, Beautiful Stranger: This has nothing on f(x)'s Beautiful Stranger. Just saying. I don't get why the more upbeat/K-poppy/electro tracks have such horrible vocal processing. Was it intentional? Is it just me? Cause I never really noticed that until I started this review....it would explain why I never play many of the songs from this album. They would be so much better if the vocals didn't sound so off. 3.5/5.
Track #12, You-aholic: This one is slightly better on the vocal issue, the verses are blah but the chorus sounds ok. As a song, this is one of the better new Japanese songs. It's very catchy and I'm not sure if I've ever heard them do a song like this in their Korean discography. There might be, but I haven't heard it. 4/5.
Track #13, Run Devil Run (Japanese Version): Funny story, I actually heard the Ke$ha version of this song before I heard SNSD's version. And to be completely honest, Ke$ha did it better. SNSD's version is still one of the best K-pop songs of all time though. I don't think this one works super well in Japanese though.
Track #14, Born To Be A Lady: And again the vocals sound fine here and it's a slower song. I don't get it. Were the dance tracks just mixed really badly or is my brain having processing issues. Whatever. Doesn't matter at this point. Really this song is kind of boring. The bridge is probably the only interesting thing to me because of the beat. 3.5/5.
Girls' Generation (The Boys) [Audio]:
Now that I get through it again, I can't understand why this album sold as much as it did. It's ok, but certainly not up to the quality that SNSD can do. I've always wondered why I could never remember how this album went at all, and now through writing this I finally understand. It's just very underwhelming. 3.5/5.
